Chargesheet: BJP zeroes in on Jogi scalp, spares govt

With the Congress in no mood to replace Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi even after the CBI chargesheet against him, the BJP has decide...

With the Congress in no mood to replace Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi even after the CBI chargesheet against him, the BJP has decided to take on a more aggressive role and build pressure so that Jogi resigns before the Assembly elections or at least proves a ‘‘liability’’ for his party.

As the first step, state BJP president Raman Singh today led a delegation of senior party leaders to Raj Bhavan and submitted a memorandum to Governor Lt General (Rtd) K.M. Seth asking him to remove Jogi. The memorandum mentioned constitutional provisions whereby a Chief Minister can be sacked once he has been chargesheeted or booked for a criminal offence.

Shukla gets more trouble for Chief Minister

Raipur: There seems to be no end Ajit Jogi’s troubles. Within three days of the announcement of the election schedule, NCP leader V.C. Shukla dealt a fresh blow to the Congress by winning over former MLA Mahant Rameshwar Giri to his side. It was, sources say, Shukla’s way of getting back at the beleaguered Chief Minister. It was two months ago that Jogi got four Shukla loyalists to leave the NCP and brought them back to the Congress. Shukla paraded Giri, a local District Congress Committee chief, before mediapersons this morning, sending clear signals that the CM’s troubles are not over yet. ‘‘Having been chargesheeted by the CBI and facing a criminal case at Shahdol, Jogi will have to see whether he remains eligible to contest the Assembly polls,’’ Shukla said. ‘‘It’s my opinion that if charges are framed against him by the court in either of the cases, Jogi will not be eligible to contest the polls under the new Election Commission guidelines.” He added that his party was in touch with legal and constitutional experts to seek their opinion and draw up a strategy accordingly. ENS

Story continues below this ad

Yet the party fell short of asking for imposition of the President’s Rule to ensure free and fair polls. The party gave three reasons as to why only Jogi, and not the Congress government, should be sacked. ‘‘Ajit Jogi, chargesheeted by the CBI in a forgery case, has been summoned by a Delhi court on November 18. He could also be arrested by the CBI in connection with the case. Before this happens and a constitutional crisis erupts in the state, the Governor can act to avoid such a situation,’’ the memorandum said.

In addition, the BJP told the Governor that after having been chargesheeted by the CBI, Jogi misused his position to ‘‘force’’ a bandh on the people. However, after the meeting Singh, his mentor Lakhi Ram Aggarwal — a former BJP president — and six other leaders looked divided on whether the Governor should recommend for imposition of President’s Rule or simply ask for the Chief Minister’s scalp. ‘‘We did ask,’’ said Singh but was soon snubbed by Aggarwal’s ‘‘No, No, we never asked for President’s Rule. We want Jogi out, not the government.’’

Singh also said the party would organise a state-level dharna tomorrow to be addressed by national general secretary Pramod Mahajan. ‘‘It is the beginning and this dharna programme will be finally taken to the block level to pressure Jogi to resign,’’ he said.

As GST 2.0 kicks in: what changes for consumers and industry

Explained3 min ago

The government has introduced significant changes to the GST structure, aiming to lower tax rates for various goods and services. This includes exemptions for Indian bread and health insurance, reduced taxes for beauty and well-being services, and addressing the inverted duty structure. The changes, effective immediately, are expected to boost household spending and encourage investments.

View all shorts

Live Blog